Children to get fluoride in school milk

Local authorities are planning to give schoolchildren "dental milk" which has been treated with fluoride. A dozen school nursery and infant schools in South Yorkshire, including those in Barnsley, Doncaster and Sheffield, are to be targeted by health officials advising headteachers and governors about the benefits of fluoridisation.

At present, fewer than two-thirds of children are registered with an NHS dentist.

The drink is to be introduced especially in areas where the water supply has not been treated with the chemical - which is thought to be responsible for an enormous improvement in dental health over the past three decades.

The move has angered some parents who warn that fluoride will cause side-effects such as discoloured teeth.

A report by York University, commissioned by the Government, revealed that 48 per cent of all children are showing signs of side effects from the chemical.

The plan is to have bottles of fluoride milk specially labelled which will then be provided to children whose parents have given written consent.

A study carried out in Scotland, where a similar scheme is in place, showed that decay rates fell by 48 per cent among five- and 10-year-olds drinking the treated milk.

John Green, a consultant in dental public health at the Sheffield health authority, said fluoride in milk was a "fall back" in areas where the water supply had not yet been treated.

"The decision would have to be taken by the school governors," he said.

"Levels of tooth decay are high in the area and you have to do something to reduce levels of disease. Anything we can do to help children is important."

Dr John Rental, the British Dental Association's chairman, said he welcomed any plan to improve the health of children's teeth but warned of possible legal action from parents of children given treated milk by mistake.

"The issue of public health measures is always loaded with problems about consent, safety and liability," he said.

"With fluoride, there is an issue if a parent has not given consent and then their child drinks another's fluoride milk. This is not the great salvation."

His views are shared by Sue King of the North and Midlands Against Fluoridation campaign group.

"This creates all sorts of problems. How are teachers going to monitor this for a start? The fact is that the Government has not done enough research into the side effects. It's very worrying."

In the meantime, ministers are drawing up plans to distribute millions of free toothbrushes and toothpaste to children in deprived areas.

The move is aimed at reducing the huge financial burden on the health service from children suffering the advanced - and often disfiguring - effects of tooth decay.

It will also help ministers meet their dental target which is to ensure that by 2003, 70 per cent of five-year-old children should have no tooth decay, and that the average five-year-old should have no more than one filled, decayed or missing tooth.

Levels of decay are strongly linked to social background and poverty. According to the British Dental Health Foundation, problems start extremely early. Four per cent of two year olds have some decay, rising to 30 per cent in four year olds.

The latest statistics from the Health Education Authority show that 17 per cent of all children have decayed teeth, a problem that increases with age. Most of the decay found by the authority had been left untreated by a dentist. In Scotland, 55 per cent of five year olds have decayed teeth.

The BDA launched its five point plan last week, demanding that the Government increase funding for NHS dentistry by more than £147m a year.